Portrait of the author as a pirate… (Nathan Carter / Avidchick)

So… what is is about being a pirate?

I had the chance to be anything for Halloween this year.

Well, that’s not quite true. I’m a big guy. So sometimes I’m limited. But being a pirate was pretty easy.

And as you can see, I make an awesome pirate.

That’s courtesy of some digital magic, by the way. The photographer is a gentleman named Nathan Carter, who I met at Megacon last February. He’s incredibly talented.

He has to be – he made me look good.

Nathan and his wife Jennifer run a shop called Avidchick Productions. You should check them out if you need pictures, video, audio, or any other media done.

Still, thinking about pirates…

They were off the radar in popular culture forever. Think I’m wrong? Name five pirate films made in the 1970’s. Or the 1980’s. Or the 1990’s.

Go ahead, I’ll wait.

Oh, they’s shown up here and there – and usually, done a proverbial belly flop culturally.

Now, though? You can’t get enough.

So, are pirates over? Maybe. After all, it’s pretty much all zombies all the time these days.

I wonder if cowboys are coming back next?